Unappreciated Peacock
by Jelbertie
Summary: Macey McHenry has always done everything her mother has told her to do, and that still isn't enough for Cynthia, but what will it take for Macey to see that?


**Hello people, this is kind of the third oneshot in my little Gallagher Girls series I've got going on, but works on its own as well. Thank you so much to Lailea for reading over this and giving me the cover picture, for which I am extremely grateful. Hope you guys enjoy :)**

Cynthia McHenry was tired. She was tired of the constant lawsuits, there were WARNINGS on the packaging for crying out loud, she was tired of having to oversee the testing for each little product and Cynthia was TIRED of the never-ending search for someone to care for…

"Mommy!" Macey McHenry, she was _such_ a nuisance, but Cynthia couldn't exactly give her up. Her husband needed a good family image after all if he was to go _anywhere _in his career. Cynthia plastered on a fake smile, another thing she was tired of, and looked down at her daughter.

"What is it?"

"I drew a picture of you." The little brat handed her mother an absolutely _awful _picture of…well according to Macey this was a picture of Cynthia, but it couldn't be. The figure in the painting didn't even look like a person!

"Well Macey, this is…_what _have you done to your dress?" The extremely expensive new dress that Cynthia had bought for her daughter was covered in paint. It seemed that Macey had managed to get more on the dress than she had on her…picture.

"Oh." Macey looked down. "I…I didn't mean to Mommy, I just…"

"Go and change immediately! We have a meeting in a few minutes, and you must look your best!" This meeting was Cynthia's new attempt at finding someone to take Macey off of her perfectly manicured hands. It wasn't going to be easy to convince them, but Cynthia had to try.

Macey followed her Mommy's orders to a tee, she always did. She always tried to be the perfect daughter, the one her Mommy always said that the cameras would love. Then maybe her Mommy would be proud of her. But Macey was smart enough to know that there would be a lot of work involved before she achieved that. She just had to get through this meeting.

These meetings all sort of blended into each other, they were always the same. Macey would go in, sit quietly unless asked a question. Then she'd leave the room whilst the two adults 'talked.' After that, Macey would never see the other person again. She was never quite sure why.

Cynthia _had _to have this meeting go well; she needed to have Macey with someone else whilst she publicized her new product after all. Cynthia couldn't have Macey ruining it.

Two minutes after Macey emerged from her room, wearing something decent, there was a knock on the door. Cynthia plastered on her fake smile once again, and opened it.

The potential new member of the McHenry staff's name was forgotten almost immediately. There were too many people whose names Cynthia had to remember, and she was never very good with names.

"It's nice to meet you." The young girl before them smiled a lot. Too much in fact. Cynthia was not impressed with this, but at that point in time, she'd take whatever she could get.

"Hello, Macey is it?"

"Hello." The five year old smiled sweetly, the perfect camera face. If only she kept that face permanently.

Overall, the meeting went well. There were no hiccups to speak of, and Cynthia was especially happy with how enthusiastic the young girl seemed to be. That meant she was more likely to take the job. Of course, it wasn't over yet. Cynthia still had a few things to discuss with the possible new help alone.

"Macey, would you leave the room now."

"Yes mommy." Macey did as she was told.

It wasn't often that the meeting went that well, Macey thought to herself. Usually her Mommy snapped at her for something she'd done and that was what scared the person off. Or at least, that's what her Mommy always told her.

Macey was about to return to her room once again, when she stopped. She had always been curious about what the grownups talked about when she left. Well, today was as good as any to find out.

"Now I know that she can be a handful." Mommy was saying to the new person. Were they talking about Macey? But…Macey had always tried to be perfect.

"Oh no, she seemed lovely."

"Just…trust me, she is a nightmare. I just need someone who'd be willing to take her off my hands." Why was Mommy saying these things? Macey thought Mommy loved her, even if the five year old couldn't be perfect.

"Wait? You mean permanently?"

"Why yes, of course."

"Look, she seems like a wonderful girl, but the contract said just over the summer. I have to go back to college in the fall."

"Ah, well that's too bad. You seemed like the perfect girl for the job."

"And, excuse me for saying so, you seem like someone who doesn't appreciate their child."

"What's there to appreciate? She does nothing but cause trouble!" Macey looked at the disgust on her Mommy's face, and changed the sadness that was beginning to overwhelm her into anger.

Her Mommy did NOT know trouble! Macey had tried to be the perfect daughter, and apparently she was 'a nightmare.' Well if her Mommy thought Macey was a 'nightmare' now, then she had no idea what a 'nightmare' even was. Macey McHenry, from that day forward, vowed to give her mother _hell_.


End file.
